Which model fits my needs the best?

croy · 11-05-2007, 07:05 PM

I am a graduate studen working on a research related degree. This involves a lot of reading of PDFs and Word files. A portable reader would seem to ease my life, so I'm not always powering up a computer to read when I have a moment, or so I'm not carrying around a small forest of docs.

So I need a reader that will easily take PDF and *.doc files without forcing me to go through too many hoops. Third party software that I have to pay a lot for is not the way to go. I don't mind running files through a conversion though.
The result must be readable. I'm tired enough, if the conversion is not in a good size print (the Sony Reader literature suggests it wouldn't be) then it is a burden.

Ideally I can place bookmarks and highlights for future use.
Durability is nice. I can take care of delicate things, but the life of an adult student involves a lot of running around from place to place.
The ability to be quickly functional on boot-up is nice. I don't have that much time and when I get a moment I would like to make use of it.
A search feature would be useful too, but if there is a highlight or book mark feature for each file that is more important.

Are all these Readers compatible with the files from Project Gutenburg?

I am in America, if that affects my buying options.

I'm new to this, so if there are other things I should consider, please post them.

Thanks for your help.

igorsk · 11-06-2007, 10:09 AM

Put a bunch of your PDFs and DOCs (saved as RTF) on an SD card, go to the nearest SonyStyle and check out how they look on the Reader. You will likely be disappointed by PDF (hint: press and hold size button to switch to/from landscape mode) but RTF should be okay.

igorsk · 11-06-2007, 10:10 AM

You can also run the PDFs through pdflrf (search the forums), that should improve readability some.

JSWolf · 11-06-2007, 10:12 AM

The 505 costs less for Americans then does the Gen3. The Gen3 is $350 + $23 for shipping.

11-05-2007, 07:05 PM	#1
croy Junior Member Posts: 1 Karma: 10 Join Date: Nov 2007 Device: Looking	Which model fits my needs the best? I am a graduate studen working on a research related degree. This involves a lot of reading of PDFs and Word files. A portable reader would seem to ease my life, so I'm not always powering up a computer to read when I have a moment, or so I'm not carrying around a small forest of docs. So I need a reader that will easily take PDF and .doc files without forcing me to go through too many hoops. Third party software that I have to pay a lot for is not the way to go. I don't mind running files through a conversion though. The result must be readable. I'm tired enough, if the conversion is not in a good size print (the Sony Reader literature suggests it wouldn't be) then it is a burden. Ideally I can place bookmarks and highlights for future use. Durability is nice. I can take care of delicate things, but the life of an adult student involves a lot of running around from place to place. The ability to be quickly functional on boot-up is nice. I don't have that much time and when I get a moment I would like to make use of it. A search feature would be useful too, but if there is a highlight or book mark feature for each file that is more important. Are all these Readers compatible with the files from Project Gutenburg? I am in America, if that affects my buying options. I'm new to this, so if there are other things I should consider, please post them. Thanks for your help. Last edited by croy; 11-05-2007 at 07:33 PM.*

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11-06-2007, 10:09 AM	#2
igorsk Wizard Posts: 3,442 Karma: 300001 Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Belgium Device: PRS-500/505/700, Kindle, Cybook Gen3, Words Gear	Put a bunch of your PDFs and DOCs (saved as RTF) on an SD card, go to the nearest SonyStyle and check out how they look on the Reader. You will likely be disappointed by PDF (hint: press and hold size button to switch to/from landscape mode) but RTF should be okay.

11-06-2007, 10:10 AM	#3
igorsk Wizard Posts: 3,442 Karma: 300001 Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Belgium Device: PRS-500/505/700, Kindle, Cybook Gen3, Words Gear	You can also run the PDFs through pdflrf (search the forums), that should improve readability some.

11-06-2007, 10:12 AM	#4
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 79,763 Karma: 145864619 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	The 505 costs less for Americans then does the Gen3. The Gen3 is $350 + $23 for shipping.

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